RBTA Help!

[chrisdamage]

Hey guys, I have been having some problems with my 2 RBTA's. They are both in my 20Long tank.

Parameters:

Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 0ppm
pH: 8.1
SG: 1.024

Lighting:

70W MH HQI Viper K2 14,000K bulb

Flow:

Return and intake for HOB fuge and a Koralia 1.

Tank has been set-up for about 2 weeks.

This anemone was a rescue from a LFS where he was getting beat up on by some clowns so I got him at a very good discount. He was a huge pain to get off the rock but I eventually did so with minimal damage to its foot. It has been in the tank for 3 days and has looked sort of closed up like this the whole time. Is it still healthy or is there anything I can do for him?

This guy is a bigger RBTA that I have had for about 2 months. I bought him and put him in my 34g Solana under a 150W MH HQI and he browned out (I learned that this was because he was receiving too much light) and he has pretty much looked like this since after about 1 week since I brought him home. I decided to put him in the 20Long because it had less powerful lighting and I thought it might appreciate that a little more so 2 days ago, I put it in the current set-up. I tore his foot a tad bit removing him from the rock in my Solana and then again removing him from the plastic cup I brought him to the 20Long in. He is looking pretty bad (droopy, tentacles not extended, spit out some zooanthallae, and as a little bit of white stuff near its mouth, mouth agape, browned out)... is there anything I can do to save him?

Sorry for the long-winded post but I just wanted to get as much information out there as possible right from the start. Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[garygb]

I think your anemones have a very good chance for recovery. I do wonder if something could be amiss in your parameters, maybe test against another test kit just to make sure. It will take them a while to acclimate with all the changes they have been throught. Provide great water quality, regular water changes, and I think things should start looking up.

 

[chrisdamage]

There are no fish in the tank... just coral. I do a 5 gallon water change every 2 weeks.

 

[dorm_reefer21]

how long has the tank been stup, i have seen similar situations when people just toss them in a newly cycled tank. they both look like they will recover, you probably shouldnt have pried the first one off the rock, now you are going to want to watch the foot for infection. but they dont look too bad. but if the second one is spitting out zooxanthellae then it isnt getting enough light. it should be put back under the MH the white around the mouth is typical of bleached, light deprived BTAs as well


and raise your salinity to 1.026

 

[DivaMan]

Well, one thing I have ALWAYS noticed is that foot damage is a slow recovery, and 2 that anemone's tentacles are WAY too short. If I remember correctly that means its hungry from repairing iteself so its digesting its tentacles. FEED IT. If it wont take, force feed

 

[littleshark]

2 weeks seems to soon for an anemone. Usuall need a tank 6+ monhs old before getting an anemone sometimes even a year. They're probably aclimating to you MH light since its more ntense then the lights at ur LFS. Feed them silver side one or twice a week. keep us updated.

 

[chrisdamage]

I thought that spitting up its zooanthallae meant that it was recieving too much light? I know that they tend to brown out when placed under too powerful of light and they gain a lot of vibrant color when placed under too little light (hence why LFS keep them under weak PC lighting)... I can't see how he is not recieving enough light because I had him directly under the 150W MH in the Solana and now he is directly under the 70W MH... these are the nems that were kept under old 40W Flourescents back in the day so I know it can't be the lighting. I've just been miffed with these guys, I have never had this much trouble with Bubble-tips before.

As far as the 2 weeks thing, I've set-up full blown reef systems in 1 week fully stocked with fish, coral, and inverts with no problems. I have never followed this rule because as long as you are using pre-cycled LR or pre-established LR, you shouldn't have many problems. If the 2 week rule is the case in this situation, it would be a first for me. I also have a Tridacna derasa in the tank that has opened up a more fully than it ever did in the LFS tanks and it is doing much better.

 

[chrisdamage]

bump... any other thoughts?

 

[BIOCUBE UNIT]

I dont know the only thing that is in question is the fact that the tank is 2 weeks old. Most of the BTA experts emphasis the need for the tank to be mature.

 

[BIOCUBE UNIT]

Did you acclimate them to the light? 70Watt MH isnt alot, but it is focused and much more intense, more so then what they where under in the fishstore.

 

[chrisdamage]

A buddy of mine is a Marine Biologist. He said it does not really matter if the tank has been set-up for 2 weeks or 2 years. I've received the same consensus from others who have been in the hobby for over 10 years and have kept plenty of RBTA's. As long as your water parameters are stable. The 2nd anemone pictured came from a 150W MH so no need to acclimate him. The 1st one pictured is located in a shaded crevice, so no problems there either.

I have got the second anemone to start eating, so that is a good sign. The first one is even more closed up than before. I need to figure something out for him but I think the second pictured anemone should pull through.

 

[chrisdamage]

1st anemone is open and eating... guess it just took a little time.

 

[Zoom]

A buddy of mine is a Marine Biologist. He said it does not really matter if the tank has been set-up for 2 weeks or 2 years.

If he said that to you, you need a new buddy.:lol: :lol: For real you need to let the tank mature at list six months to get the Anemone a good stable water .
And they don't look RPTA to me more like a regular BTA .
Here is my rose .

 

[chrisdamage]

One is an almost fluorescent pink with yellow tips and the other one looked like the one in your tank. The one is just "browned out" from photoshock under the 150W MH in my 34gal. And they are both bad photographs.